Chimpanzees vs. Humans

By reComparison Contributor

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Difference between Chimpanzees and Humans

Humans and chimpanzees have been studied for physical changes over the span of millions of years because scientists linked us together in ancient times. It is known that chimpanzees have 94% of DNA in common with humans. They also have many other characteristics that have been demonstrated to be similar to humans physically, mentally and emotionally. So how are we so closely related to chimpanzees? Well it's simple, we have the same ancestor. Although different, humans and chimpanzees are two very similar creatures and its strange and scary thought to consider.

Intelligence

It has been debatable if chimpanzees have a higher intelligence than humans. Studies have been taken and tested to give statistics to this hypothesis. A few studies were taken and have proven that baby chimpanzees up to 9 months old are smarter then human children up to 9 months old. These chimpanzees are the ones who are orphaned and taken care of by zoo keepers just as children are taken care of by their human parents. Human babies did not have the same cognitive responses as chimps nor the same mental responses. However after 9 months of age, humans take the cake as far as intelligence goes when compared with chimpanzees.

Physical Appearance

Chimps and humans have such similar features that it's pretty obvious to most scientists that we were created from the same person or root race. Humans and monkeys share facial features. The same type of facial structure; eyes, nose, ears, mouth, teeth and we both walk upright on our legs. A major difference is that chimpanzees also walk on their hands sometimes and humans do not. Another physical difference is they have much more hair than we do; while we get light hair on our arms, legs, and faces, they grow large amounts of hair. While our noses are similar in some cases, many human noses don’t resemble our chimp cousin’s.

Survival

We differ from chimpanzees in survival for quite a few reasons. One reason in particular is that we can use money for survival. Chimpanzees on the other hand have only their bare hands, the environment and themselves for survival. They are intelligent enough to make sling shots to get food from high up, as well as make other products with just branches and leaves. Humans use guns, knives, societal protectors or fighting to get away from unwanted intruders. Chimps, on the other hand, only have themselves, their family pods, the trees, branches and other things found in the wild. These forms of survival are very different and much harder for our chimp cousins. Humans have developed technologies which set us apart in innumerable ways from chimpanzees.

One burning question I have for the scientists is, “If humans are an evolved form of chimpanzee, why aren't there more evolved forms of other creatures on the Earth?” In continuing with the theory that humans evolved from chimps, humans do not all look the same whereas chimps do. We may have similar mannerisms, emotions and feelings to chimps but as a group humans have differing body types, skin colors, hair textures, eye colors, etc. that haven’t been explained very well at all.

Summary

Humans are overall smarter then chimpanzees but from 0 to 9 months studies have shown chimps to be smarter then human babies up to 9 months old.

Chimpanzees and humans share 94% of the same DNA.

Both Chimps and humans walk on two legs, however chimps also walk on their hands.

Both show cognitive skills at a very young age and both can show emotions.

When chimps are taken care of by zoo owners as orphans they grow up to be much healthier adults with a longer and happier life span, just like humans.

>One burning question I have for the scientists is, “If humans are an evolved form of chimpanzee, why aren't there more evolved forms of other creatures on the Earth?”

Humans did not evolve from chimpanzees. We have a common ancestor, that's all. In fact, we share a common ancestor with every living thing on the planet - it's just that the ancestor we share with chimps lived much more recently and we've therefore diverged less from the chimpanzee than we have, say, from a whale or a dog. Or an amoeba.

> In continuing with the theory that humans evolved from chimps, humans do not all look the same whereas chimps do.

1. The human visual cortex has evolved mechanisms to read the emotional signals in *human* faces, and the unique characteristics of individual faces for the purpose of recognition. Chimpanzee faces do differ - we're just not set up to identify the differences with the same accuracy and immediacy with which we can identify humans. We can see the presence of the emotional recognition mechanism by contrasting the experience of autistic people who lack or unable to access such mechanisms.

If you wish to learn more about brain function, I'd suggest you read 'The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat', by Oliver Sacks, a neurologist and psychologist.

2. Humans did not evolve from chimps. I know I said that in an earlier paragraph, but I'd just like to underline it.

What should we make of new research showing only a 85% similarity between humans and chimp DNA? These revisions downward from 98.8% similarity from 2005 shows a stunning dissimilarity. I hear very little about this.